A KiwiRail spokeswoman said the Aratere had suffered from a technical fault which was discovered as the ship was preparing to berth at Wellington just before 2pm today.
At this stage it appeared to be an electrical issue though the fault had not yet been isolated, she said.
The Aratere's 2.45pm sailing from Wellington to Picton and 6.45pm crossing from Picton to Wellington were both cancelled as a result of the fault.
This was to allow time to identify and repair the fault, she said.
The beleaguered ferry was put out of action when it lost a propeller on a crossing in November last year. It then underwent a three-month refurbishment in Singapore.
Affected passengers and freight were being transferred on to other sailings, the spokeswoman said.
NZME.
